


you may be poison, but sure as hell taste like honey

by twelfthnight (forthecentury)



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Dirty Talk, M/M, Magical Realism, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Praise Kink, Vague Worldbuilding, everybody's a switch, pwp really, this is really just my love letter to kmg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:36:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28907943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forthecentury/pseuds/twelfthnight
Summary: It's an amicable end, all things considered. Mingyu has to remind himself that it's not an actual goodbye, especially when he still plans on buying from Jeonghan, ex-fuckbuddy status notwithstanding. There's nobody on this side of the city that currates a spell and potion ingredient collection quite like Jeonghan's, and Mingyu would be a fool to start shopping elsewhere. Minghao would personally eviscerate him if he gets the cheap stuff from other dealers.Still, Mingyu's not an idiot. He knows where to draw his boundaries. He's got a new man who makes him feel like a giddy teenager all over again, and he'd be a fool to cock it up all over someone he used to sleep with.—When Mingyu starts dating Joshua Hong, a classy potions master and the love of his life, he doesn’t expect his new boyfriend to have history with his old fuckbuddy and potion ingredient dealer, Jeonghan.Of course, that doesn’t have to necessarily be abadthing.
Relationships: Hong Jisoo | Joshua/Kim Mingyu, Hong Jisoo | Joshua/Kim Mingyu/Yoon Jeonghan, Hong Jisoo | Joshua/Yoon Jeonghan, Kim Mingyu/Yoon Jeonghan
Comments: 23
Kudos: 130





	you may be poison, but sure as hell taste like honey

**Author's Note:**

> title from (g)i-dle’s ‘oh my god’, my current muse of the month :)
> 
> this was seriously supposed to be 3k at the most. then worldbuilding got away with me, and I wrote everything in what felt like a fever dream.
> 
> all the potion ingredients you’ll read are from the hp universe, but it’s not actually set in it lol.
> 
> this is a work of fiction with nsfw elements. enjoy :')

There are a few things Mingyu has, to some extent, come to associate with Jeonghan after a while.

There’s the perpetual scent of men’s cologne with a sharp tang of citrus somehow mixed in, usually from either his little bottles of hand lotion or from the orange jelly beans he’s fond of snacking on. An endearing habit of mumbling “ _no no no no no_ ” under his breath whenever something doesn’t go his way, paired with the unconscious act of dragging his hand through his hair in frustration. Small, everyday things, like the peculiar way he holds his pencil, the plastic knife he always has on him at all times for some reason, and his bullshit methods of reading astrology from this constellation projector he keeps on his coffee table, usually as a way of convincing Mingyu to do something absolutely lucrative for him, like helping him chase down a herd of Cornish pixies at three in the morning in a bog outside of the city.

He'll miss all of it, fondly so, once all this is over, but for now he's been afforded the very rare treat of burying himself deep inside Jeonghan's ass, so he'll be damned if he lets anything else distract him while it lasts.

Jeonghan groans, one hand fisted into the fabric of his pillowcase, and the other is pressed flat against the headboard, bracing him against the force of Mingyu's thrusts. Somehow, that only makes Mingyu want to piston his hips harder, go faster, whisper dirtier things into Jeonghan's ear so all Jeonghan can really think of is him. 

"Hyung, you feel so fucking good, so fucking hot around me, taking me so well, like a champ—"

"Shut _up_ ," Jeonghan pants, looking over his shoulder to glower at him, only for his annoyed expression to slacken as Mingyu sneaks a hand down to grasp his cock and switches up the angle. "H-Holy shit what are you—"

"When I came here, I knew this was gonna be the last time I'll get to do anything in bed with you," he whispers, mouthing against the curve of Jeonghan's bare shoulder. "But then you finally offered to bottom, actually bottom, like some kind of sexy goodbye gift? You're making me feel insane, hyung."

Jeonghan snorts, head dropping to hang betweens his shoulders, breathing heavy. "Well, can't let you go off and get settled down with a good boy and forget all about me, can I?" He shoots him a look, sly. "He _is_ a good boy, right, Gyu?"

Mingyu shudders, mind blanking of everything except for the movement of his hips, the twist of his wrist.

Jeonghan smirks at his stunned expression and pushes himself up until Mingyu gets the hint, eases back and pulls out just long enough for Jeonghan to be able to roll over onto his back. Despite his clear obsession with staying in control (Mingyu can count the amount of times Jeonghan has _truly_ bottomed on one hand, not including the moments where he takes it but is still very clearly the one in charge), Mingyu watches on with a base kind of satisfaction as Jeonghan's eyes flutter when he slides back in, zero resistance, slows down just as he bottoms out, and then grinds forward with his hips just to see Jeonghan's whole body shudder at the sensation of being utterly full.

"He is," Mingyu whispers. "He's a very good boy who likes me very much, and is very understanding of how much I like to sleep with you."

Jeonghan hums, contemplative. "Does he take it as well as I do, him?"

Mingyu could barely hold back his eye roll. "You’re a control freak. You can't even get over how I put a cup on a drying rack differently than you. There’s really no competition."

Jeonghan narrows his eyes, then clenches down, hard. Mingyu nearly falls over, stars bursting behind his eyes. Je- _sus_.

"No lie there, I guess. Better get a move on then, if you're gonna be the one giving it good to him," he smirks.

Mingyu leans over, so close he could count the lashes on Jeonghan's eyes, see the faint scar across the bridge of his nose. "I got it in the bag," he says, and kisses Jeonghan, hard. Jeonghan responds in kind, wrapping his arms around his neck and his legs around Mingyu's waist, urging him deeper, and that's as good of a surrender of control as any other. It doesn't take long for Mingyu to feel his climax building, reaching its peak, and he drags his thumb against the sensitive spot under the head of Jeonghan's cock. It startles him into coming with a groan, his release hot and sticky against Mingyu's hand, and Mingyu follows shortly, emptying into the condom with a long, drawn-out exhale.

The two of them hover there for a moment, catching their breaths, blinking away the haze. Holy shit, Mingyu thinks dazedly. That had probably been the best sex he'd ever had with Jeonghan. Kind of a shame that it's breakup-ish sex, as much as one could breakup with a fuck buddy.

"Yech," Jeonghan sighs, arms flopping beside him. "I'm disgusting. Go get a towel."

Mingyu rolls his eyes and pulls out, taking care to go easy, especially when Jeonghan bites down on a wince. He gives the older a comforting pat on the thigh before wobbling out of bed, tying the condom and tossing it into the trash as he searches for a clean towel in the bathroom across the hall.

When he returns, Jeonghan is lighting up his pipe with his usual preference of regular tobacco mixed with decadent woodland weed, drenching the room and himself in the smoky, outdoorsy scent. Never one to say no to a post-coital shotgun, Mingyu lets Jeonghan tug him down and breathe a lungful of smoke into his mouth before leaning back, letting Mingyu clean him up.

"Can't believe I'm losing business because my regular fuckbuddy decided to ask a pretty boy out," Jeonghan grumbles, letting his head loll over his pillows. "Oh, the cruelties of Fate."

"You're so dramatic. You're not losing my business, I'm just not going to come by in person for a while. Plus, I always pay you for potion ingredients, the sex is just a bonus."

"Yah," Jeonghan says, smacking him in the arm, eyebrow raised. "You're not actually thinking of continuing to buy from me, are you? You new boyfriend will dump you faster than you can say _belladonna_."

"I find it hilariously ironic that you, the one with the commitment issues, is giving me a lecture on dating etiquette."

"I'm mortally allergic to staying in long-term emotional relationships, not an idiot," Jeonghan fires back. "But do what you want, if you come crawling back after boyfie kicks you out I'll still give you a conciliation blowjob. I’m generous like that."

"Nobody is getting any conciliation blowjobs," Mingyu says, cross, and chucks the used towel in the direction of the laundry hamper. It misses by a wide arc and lands on the floor, earning him a hiss from Jeonghan. Mingyu ignores it and just crawls into bed, tugging Jeonghan against him so the dealer can rest against his chest. "He actually buys off you too, you know, through me. Says you've got a good curation, so he's not actually all that bothered by our 'business transactions'."

Jeonghan blinks up at him with surprise. "Oh? You're dating a potions master?"

"You say that with such astonishment, I'm not sure if I should be offended or not."

Jeonghan laughs and offers his pipe. "Don't get your underwear in a twist, I'm just saying that because I also have an ex who's a potions master. Lasted about a year with him, surprisingly. Super upright bunch. Didn't think that was your type, given how you sleep around as much as I do."

Mingyu shrugs. "He's not shaming me or anything, but now that we're dating the expectations for both of us is to remain committed. He's not that uptight though; he does buy from independent dealers after all."

"Boy's got taste then," Jeonghan sniffs. "Don't even get me started on how snooty other PMs get. You sure he's the right one for you?"

"Says the guy whose ex is also a potions master?"

"Touché. But then again, he is an ex."

"And that's got nothing to do with your commitment issues at all, does it?" Mingyu teases, and takes the smack to his chest because he deserves it, for that cheeky comment. But Jeonghan doesn't seem bothered by it much, since he continues to let Mingyu smoke and cuddle him for an hour longer than he normally would before kicking him out in the late afternoon with all his purchases and a bruising kiss to his lips.

"Don't be a stranger, Kim Mingyu," he smirks, giving Mingyu a firm smack on the ass that leaves him whining and rubbing his rear end. "You know where to find me."

He lets Mingyu give him a chaste kiss to the cheek, shuts the door behind him, and that’s the end of that.

It's an amicable end, all things considered. Mingyu has to remind himself that it's not an actual goodbye, especially when he still plans on buying from Jeonghan, ex-fuckbuddy status notwithstanding. There's nobody on this side of the city that currates a spell and potion ingredient collection quite like Jeonghan's, and Mingyu would be a fool to start shopping elsewhere. Minghao would personally eviscerate him if he gets the cheap stuff from other dealers.

Still, Mingyu's not an idiot. He knows where to draw his boundaries. He's got a new man who makes him feel like a giddy teenager all over again, and he'd be a fool to cock it up all over someone he used to sleep with.

The shared apartment is empty when he returns; Minghao probably still at work, and Seokmin out on a business trip until Thursday night. Crockpot the cat is sleeping on top of the refrigerator like always, content to lie in the patch of sun shining in through a gap in the curtains. He barely cracks an eye open as Mingyu lugs all his purchases in and cracks open jars and wrappings and bundles, divvying up the ingredients his friends have requested for him to pick up from Jeonghan.

He's just finished wrapping everything back up and bagging them when his phone buzzes on the countertop, lighting up with a notification.

 **_Lovey_ ** _♡  
_ _Gyu, want to swing by Junnie's restaurant for dinner tn?  
_ _My treat_ ^^

 **_Mingooo_ ** _🐶  
_ _Yes!!!!  
_ _Give me ten to shower and I'll pick you up from the academy_

He washes thoroughly, sneaking some of Minghao's scented body soaps to get extra fancy before throwing on a knit sweater and a pair of jeans he knows makes his ass look good.

His boyfriend works exclusively out of the potions labs funded by the private academy in the heart of the city. It's a posh place, stuffy with old traditions and aesthetics, and not an establishment Mingyu would frequent if he could help it, but it's got a nice pavilion and garden path outside he likes waiting at.

His boyfriend exits the building at exactly ten after six, chatting with his fellow PMs as they descend down the stone steps. He spots Mingyu waiting and lights up, quickly bidding goodbye to the others before hurrying over. Mingyu stands with a grin and opens his arms for a hug.

"Hi, Shua-hyung," he says, when Joshua is close enough for him to gather up in his arms. Joshua smiles at him and leans up for a sweet kiss.

"Right on time," Joshua says, eyes twinkling, and Mingyu's stomach swoops with a cheesy happiness. "Shall we go to dinner?"

"Of course, I'm starved."

He notices the co-workers giving them not-so-subtle side-eyes as they head off; those are the uptight and snobby types Jeonghan had rolled his eyes over, but Joshua is, luckily, nothing of that sort. He's proper and neat in the workplace, but he's humble and generous where it counts. He's also astoundingly cheeky as well, eager to tease as much as he is tactful in soothing away pouts Mingyu gives him after being left red-faced and shy. Not a lot of people seem to know about that playful side of him, and it makes Mingyu hold his head a little higher knowing Joshua Hong is dating _him_ , holding _his_ hand and telling him all about his day as they walk down the block to get dinner together.

"—and you wouldn't believe the audacity that woman has, to not only use up all of the wormwood I had placed on reserve, but then to lecture me about being more prepared and organizing my ingredients in advance," Joshua huffs over their meal, grumpily spearing one of the dumplings in his bowl. "She was the one who stole my batch! And when I asked her to show me the tracking logs and the tag on the stock, she lied and said she'd forgotten to file it and threw the tag out already! Some people are unbelievable."

He's so cute when he's whiny, and even though Joshua is older, Mingyu feels the innate desire to dote on him, stroke his hair and let out his grievances about that terrible, ingredient-stealing co-worker as well.

"Well, if it's any consolation, I do have a nice little surprise for you after this," he says, leaning in conspiratorially. "Something that starts with a _Boom_ and ends with _slang_."

Joshua's whole expression clears up, looking delighted. "Boomslang skin! You got some? Today?"

"I did," Mingyu grins. "There was stock, so I bought it out for you. Now you'll have extra."

"Oh my god, thank you, Mingyu. This is the dealer you normally visit, yes? The FWB one?”

"Mhm," Mingyu nods, and then falters a little. "That's okay, right? I mean, we did fool around a little, but after this I'm not going back for a while, and I'll keep my shopping elsewhere for the time being—"

"Heavens no," Joshua interrupts. "Don't you dare go to another dealer, Kim Mingyu, where else am I going to get proper, sun-dried boomslang skin that’s not shipped from overseas? Healthy murtlap tentacles? Or find doxy eggs that fresh? The dumbfounded look on Hyejin's face when I brought them out the other week…" he gets a slightly, dreamy look before clearing his throat. "Anyway. What I'm trying to say is, I don't really mind, you know. That you used to sleep with him, and that you still buy and broker from him. It doesn’t bother me."

"But we just started this relationship and I want everything to go well," Mingyu pouts. "I want to show you I'm serious about this, and not have you doubt me for anything. I like you a lot, Shua."

"I know you do," Joshua says, leaning over to pinch Mingyu's cheek cutely. "And like you told me before, you're ending the bedroom aspect of things with him now, there's no hard feelings between you two, and you're choosing to be with me. So far as I can tell, there's nothing to worry about."

"You really are too generous, you know. Hyung's heart is too big."

Joshua laugs, eyes crinkling beautifully as he does. "Oh, Mingyu, hyung’s not as pure and sweet as you might think. You should hear about the _things_ I've gotten up to in the past." He smirks at the way Mingyu's eyes widen, the char siu slipping from his chopsticks. "Let's just say I get it. And let's just say I don't mind you being a little freaky at all."

Mingyu sits up straight, eyes gleaming. There's red hot heat spreading in his lower belly now, making him hunger for something that's not quite the restaurant's all-day dim sum.

"I haven’t heard much about this side of hyung," he says lowly, stretching his leg out so he could brush the arch of his foot against the inside of Joshua's leg, trailing up his calf and past his knee. Joshua twitches, eyes darkening a smidgen. "Can you show me?"

"Of course," Joshua murmurs, licking a bit of sauce off the end of his chopsticks suggestively. He smirks again when Mingyu, predictably, zeros in in the gesture. "Why don't I pop by your place after dinner for some dessert, hmm?"

Mingyu exhales, giddy.

"Yes please—"

" _Ahem._ "

Yet another bamboo steamer of dim sum and a whole plate of fried rice appears before them, along with a deeply exasperated Junhui.

"You two are _not_ as quiet as you think you are, so for the love of god, if you're gonna get freaky here just take this to go and get outta my establishment."

"Aw, are we being too kinky for you, Junnie?" Joshua calls, laughing when Junhui fake-gags and walks swiftly back to the kitchen.

"I want a bomb-ass tip from the two of you after, you heathens!"

Joshua waggles his eyebrows, and Mingyu swears he's in love already.

* * *

Crockpot is awake when they make it back to the apartment, immediately meowing for Joshua's attention the second they get through the door. The conniving little thing would hardly give his time of day for Mingyu, who feeds and cleans and pets him to his little heart's content, but the second that furball laid eyes on Joshua he was purring and rumbling and begging for scratches behind the ears, all up in his boyfriend's business. Mingyu could kind of relate, in a way; it's not unlike how he felt when he saw Joshua for the first time at the Potions Brewers and Masters' fundraiser Minghao dragged him to as a plus one. 

But he'll be damned if he has to share his new boyfriend with their _housecat_ right now.

"Shua-hyung," Mingyu cajoled, snaking an arm around Joshua's waist and squeezing. He can feel his boyfriend's breath hitch, the way his petting falters on Crockpot's ears, and grins. "Shua-hyung, pay attention to me."

"Needy, aren't you?" Joshua chuckles, winding his fingers through Mingyu's. Mingyu sighs, pressing his hips forward, so that there's no mistaking the bulge that's currently starting to tent his jeans. "Hmm. I'll take that as a yes."

That's followed with a little wiggle, intended to tease and frustrate, and Mingyu has had just about enough. He tightens his grip around Joshua's waist, the motion yanking him flush against Mingyu's front, and presses his lips against the shell of Joshua's ear, pitching his voice deep.

"I'm not needy. I just need _you_ right now, hyung, won't you be good and let me take you to bed, hm? Let me take these nice clothes off you, you looked so good coming out of work today, that jacket is amazing on your shoulders, but I think it'd look even better on the floor, right? Let me take care of you? Let me make you feel really, really good, yeah?"

"Oh my _god_ ," Joshua chokes out, and Mingyu's delighted to see the red at the tips of his ears. And then his world is turning as Joshua grabs him by the front of his shirt, mashing their lips together, purposefully walking Mingyu backwards until they're stumbling into his room, door locking closed after them. His sweater is being tugged off, and Joshua allows Mingyu to practically strip him bare and manhandle him onto the bed. That's the thing he likes so much about Joshua—he's perfectly willing to let Mingyu take the lead, but he gives as good as he gets and he'll still interject with moments of his own, like the way he's skimming his fingers along Mingyu's pectoral before pinching his nipple, hard. Mingyu literally feels his cock jump at that.

Judging by the way Joshua’s grin widens, he felt that too.

"Want you in me, Mingyu," he says, low and throaty. "Want you to fuck me so good I feel it for a week straight."

Well. When he says it so plainly, who is Mingyu to refuse?

At some point, Crockpot stops scratching and meowing woefully at his door, which means that Minghao is probably home from work and probably super grossed out by the very obvious way they're fucking in Mingyu's room, even as he endeavors to stay quiet. He's a good roommate, but he's also got Joshua Hong laid out under him, bendy legs pressed against his chest as Mingyu rails into him, bedsprings squeaking alarmingly with every thrust. Joshua bites into his pillow to muffle his moans, eyes glassy with want, and Mingyu kisses his temple, murmuring sweet nothings to his lovely boyfriend.

"Fuck, hyung, you're driving me crazy, you look so beautiful. I can't take my eyes off you."

Joshua just sighs, biting his lip, and raises a hand to brush Mingyu's hair out of his eyes. Mingyu turns his face and sucks one of Joshua's fingers into his mouth, tongue laving over the knuckle, and delights in the way Joshua's breath catches in his throat.

"You're a menace," he says, strangled. He crooks his finger, and Mingyu slides it further into his mouth, watching the way Joshua's eyes grow dark. "You're—holy shit."

Mingyu pulls back with a _pop_ , hips never faltering, and winks. "No gag reflex either. Just in case I never mentioned."

Joshua makes another weak sound again. "No, you did not. What the hell, you didn't."

"Well…" he leans over, thrusting deeper, and relishes in the flutter of Joshua's eyelashes, the way his eyes practically roll back. "Now you do."

"I wanna fuck you next time," Joshua pants. "Wanna fuck you, but before that, I'll get myself hard in your mouth. I want you to blow me, get that tongue on me, let me slide all the way into your throat until I can feel you when I touch it." He mimics the motion, tracing his fingers down the column of Mingyu's neck, and Mingyu feels his pulse jump at the very thought of it. "Just hold myself there until I see tears in your eyes, until you start whining at me like you do when you get impatient, and then I'll pull out and put you flat on your back and give it to you good, just like this, like the way you're doing it for me. ‘S that okay?"

"Hyung," Mingyu moans, and he's not going to hold out for long. Joshua doesn't seem like he's going to last either, given the way his stomach is clenching, his cock is weeping, and his arms shake as he props himself up to kiss Mingyu.

They come like that, together, making a mess on the sheets and on their skin until Mingyu pulls out and tumbles onto his side, chest heaving.

"Give me a second," he breathes out, rubbing his eyes. "I'll get a towel—"

Joshua laughs. "Gyu, you can barely keep your eyes open. Here, I got you covered."

He leans over the bed and fishes about in his discarded pants before pulling out a travel-sized pack of wet wipes from the back pocket. At Mingyu's bemused look, his boyfriend just tears it open and says, "I know how much of a cuddle bug you are after sex, silly. Why waste time fumbling about in the bathroom for a towel? These work just fine."

"You're the best," Mingyu says fervently, letting Joshua arrange him until he's lying on his back. The wipes are a little cold at first, but everything is clean within a few minutes, and the next thing he knows Joshua is tucking himself against his side, dragging the sheets up over their naked bodies and cuddling close. Mingyu likes the feeling of the other man in his arms, warm skin and solid muscles under his fingertips. He plants a kiss on Joshua's forehead and watches the other smile, eyes curving attractively.

"What d'you want for breakfast tomorrow? I looked up a good blueberry pancake recipe the other day. You like pancakes right?"

"I love them," Joshua beams. That's followed by a yawn, a stretch, and further snuggles into Mingyu's arms; a super cute pre-bedtime routine that Joshua himself probably isn't even aware of. "S'long as you have coffee too, it'll be perfect."

"Anything for you, babe," Mingyu laughs, getting comfy himself. "Anything for you."

* * *

Things go pretty spectacularly for a while.

It might be because of the honeymoon phase, but that's not necessarily it, because Mingyu had known Joshua for years now, and his impression of the older man has changed accordingly as he got to know him better. Joshua was intimidating at first; he was a gifted potions master transferred from a foreign college to the academy, dressed beautifully in a bespoke suit, and his hair was a sleek blond back then, shiny despite the mood lighting of the banquet hall. Mingyu, only present at the party by extension of Minghao, felt woefully lost and awed by such a handsome and brilliant man the entire night. 

But Joshua is such an easygoing, friendly person that it's not long before Mingyu starts talking to him for real, first through Minghao whenever he went to visit his friend at the academy, and then over text after they exchanged numbers, and then they were making their own plans to hang out, catching movies and going on walks by the river and shopping for new clothes and accessories uptown.

It's also no surprise that he starts sleeping a lot more often with Jeonghan around that time, hoping to work off some of that extra sexual frustration after seeing Joshua try on a sheer top at the boutique, or watch him lick melting vanilla ice cream down the waffle cone when they went to get dessert. Jeonghan gave him so much shit for it, laughing himself stupid when Mingyu admitted the reason behind their increased hookups, but let it not be said that the man doesn't put out; the sex during that time had been some of _the_ most mind-blowing sex Mingyu has ever had his whole life.

And that was also when Joshua found out that Mingyu had a side gig as a trusted broker for some of the best ingredients in the market, and started asking him for help sourcing independent stock the academy couldn't provide. And thus, Joshua's potions improved, Jeonghan started making bank off the academy's coin, and Mingyu got the best of both worlds when it came to both his puppy crush and his regular hookup.

He meant it when he said he'd honour his word to Joshua and not reach out to Jeonghan for orders in person, but that plan flew out the window roughly a month later when Joshua video calls him from work one afternoon, alight with fury.

"I have _had_ it with that woman," his boyfriend snarls over the phone. It's rare for Joshua to really lose his temper, but everyone had their breaking points, Mingyu supposes. And getting his very specific, extremely important, and pointedly reserved stock of dragon's blood snatched from under his nose is, in fact, one of those breaking points.

"She knew I needed it, I had requested it from the Grandmaster _months_ in advance and it was stored away specifically for me to use with this commission and now I have nothing! I have absolutely nothing to use for my potion, there is a whole deadline coming up and I am going to have to toss the entire thing because that woman is a literal thief with a vendetta against me. For real!"

"Okay," Mingyu says, sneaking in when Joshua had to pause to compose himself. "Deep breath, Shua-hyung. Let's not jump ahead of ourselves, there might be a chance to salvage this."

"I wish there was," Joshua groans. Now that the wind has gone from his sails, he sounds exhausted. "It's a very delicate and complex potion. I need to get the blood in it or else the entire thing will go bad. And it's taken me three weeks to brew it. My client expects it next Monday."

Mingyu feels a flare of outrage at the thieving co-worker for putting his boyfriend in such a position, but he tamps it down in favour of problem solving first. Vengeance can come later. "Is there anything the academy can do? Can't they make a priority request for specific ingredients? I know dragon blood is a Category 7 High-Risk Distribution Good, but an establishment like that shouldn't have a problem with it."

"I would, but they won't do anything without official paperwork," Joshua sighs. He's sitting in his office, slumped over his desk. His glasses hang off his nose as he makes a face. "It took me at least a month to get the approval before I could request shipment. There's no time."

Mingyu wiggles his mouse over his computer screen, thinking. He's thankful that the bank is quiet today, and none of his clients have called in for updates about their stocks in ingredients trades. He's not surprised by Joshua's answer, especially when it comes to something as rare and volatile as dragon's blood. The academy only sources from a specific list of providers too, something about internal trade politics and assets with the school itself, and those bigwigs take forever to get back to anyone.

Then, he gets an idea.

"Hyung, you can independently source your own ingredients right? Does that apply for just a specific category, or is it anything you want?"

"It's anything I want, provided I get it legally and it's the correct type," Joshua frowns. "But who on earth is going to have dragon's blood just kicking around in their storage room?"

Mingyu twists in his seat, glancing around him. His cubicle buddy has been on the phone for the last two hours, mumbling in increasingly exasperated tones to his client about overseas exchange rates. He leans in to his phone. 

"My dealer does. The one I used to sleep with."

Joshua's eyes widened. "You're kidding."

"Nope. I don't know if it's the exact type you're looking for, but I do know he's got some. It's pricey, and I know I said I wasn’t going to contact him directly, but—"

"Who gives a damn? Is he free right now?"

"I—he might?" Mingyu sputters. "I can give him a call. Are you sure about this? I just kinda threw the option out there, I didn't think you'd take me seriously."

"Mingyu, I have been buying from your guy for the last year or so," Joshua says, fondly exasperated. "And this is seriously an emergency. Nevermind that Hyejin is probably actively trying to sabotage me over that senior PM position, I really need to get this potion done. Could you give him a call and ask for me? I'm looking for a yellow-bellied western drake. Preferably female."

"Okay, I will," Mingyu promises. "I'll do that right now, let me call you back?"

"Yes please. Thank you, Gyu, thank you so much."

"Of course, babe," Mingyu smiles, and blows his boyfriend a kiss. Joshua pretends to catch it, looking a little less stressed than before, thankfully. "Okay, be right back!"

Once Joshua hangs up, he hovers over the _Yoon, J_ in his recents for just a moment before hitting call.

Jeonghan picks up after the third ring.

"Mingyu." He sounds amused. "Don't tell me you got dumped already?"

"Oh, shut it," Mingyu rolls his eyes. "I'm actually calling with a time-sensitive and ingredient-specific request. On behalf of my boyfriend. Who is still very much dating me."

Jeonghan laughs, loud and unreserved. "Well, that's sweet of you. What can I help you and your loverboy out with?"

"Dragon's blood. Do you still have any in stock?"

"Oh my. Now that's interesting," Jeonghan purrs. "I do, in fact. I have four types. Do you know what he's interested in?"

"A yellow-bellied western drake," Mingyu recites. "Female, if you have it."

"Well, looks like loverboy's in luck. I _do_ have a female yellow-bellied. The blood was harvested at approximately five-hundred and twenty-eight years of age. It's a little young, for a dragon. Is that alright?"

"I'm not sure," Mingyu admits. "I can give him a call and then call you back?"

"Pfft. Why give the extra run around? Tell him to swing by today and take a look himself. Any self-respecting potions master would check an ingredient of this caliber first before ordering."

Mingyu squints.

"And before you go off on me, I am not going to try and embarrass you to your loverboy," Jeonghan says, accurately predicting his next thread of complaints. "I can be tactful, you know."

"Debatable," Mingyu snorts. "I'll come with him. Who knows what you might say to him about me, or worse, say to scare him off."

"As if I would willingly sabotage my own business," Jeonghan sniffs, offended. "Don't be late, Mingyu, I have a wonderful date planned with a rose bath bomb and a whole bottle of cherry soju tonight."

"Jesus. See you later, Jeonghan."

He hangs up, feeling a thread of trepidation through him, but brushes it off for the sake of his boyfriend. Poor Joshua, who's waiting for him to call back with hopefully good news.

Sighing, Mingyu exits the current call and dials his boyfriend again.

* * *

“Whoa.”

The hand holding his jolts him back when Joshua comes to a dead stop on the sidewalk, gazing up in amazement at the house. “ _This_ is where your dealer lives?”

“Yeah,” Mingyu nods. It’s a nice suburban place, located at the end of a quiet neighbourhood, and it’s big. Mingyu had the same reaction when he first saw the place as well, jaw unhinging as he took in the three-storey building, the small and neatly groomed garden in front, and the short driveway. “Don’t let the outside fool you though, it’s basically just a glorified storehouse. He runs his business directly from home.”

“Convenient, I suppose,” Joshua comments, letting Mingyu lead him up to the front door. He gives the ornate rabbit-knocker a firm rattle, and after a beat, the front door unlocks and swings open of its own accord. The landing is dark as usual when they walk in, lending to the spooky atmosphere with the house’s antique furnishings. Boxes line the hallway, and there’s something slimy and oozing rolling about in a glass container when they pass the kitchen. Mingyu guides them into the living room and automatically throws open one of the curtains, letting in some weakening daylight before digging through one of the many boxes on the mantelpiece for matches.

“Sit down for now, he’ll show up sooner or later.”

Candles lit, Mingyu turns, only to find Joshua still standing, staring down at the coffee table with a look of confusion and dawning recognition on his face.

“Shua-hyung? What’s the matter?”

Mingyu is quick to hurry to his boyfriend’s side, but Joshua doesn’t answer right away. He bends down to pick up the constellation projector, turning it gingerly over in his hands.

“Mingyu, what did you say your dealer’s name was?”

“I—I didn’t, I think,” Mingyu blinks. “He’s—”

Brisk footsteps coming down the stairs interrupts, and a second later Jeonghan strolls into the living room, shucking off a heavy rubber apron and matching, elbow-length gloves as he goes.

“Sorry about that, I was rebottling some armadillo bile when you arrived, but it looks like you’ve—” he stops dead in his tracks, eyes widening when Joshua turns. “ _Joshuji?_ ”

“Yoon Jeonghan,” Joshua says, blankly, and Mingyu stares between them, bewilderment mounting with each turn.

“ ‘Joshuji’?” he repeated, but neither man answered him right away, too caught up staring at each other.

“Ah,” Jeonghan says, understanding appearing on his face as something evidently clicks. “ _You’re_ Mingyu’s loverboy.”

“And you’re his dealer,” Joshua says, sounding just a little strained. “So this is what you got up to after college, huh?”

Jeonghan chuckles awkwardly, looking between the two of them. “Correction; I never finished college. Never really was my cup of tea anyway, lectures and labs alike.”

“I could tell,” Joshua says, fingers tightening on the projector. Jeonghan looks down, and to Mingyu’s amazement, something akin to a blush colours his cheeks.

“You remember that, huh.”

“How could I not? I built it,” Joshua volleys back. Then he sets the projector back down, looking flustered, and both men stare at each other some more, seemingly trying to take the other in.

“So… do you two, like, know each other?” Mingyu asks, feeling a little left out now, but he’s never been too good when people talk around him. He’s clingy like that.

Joshua winces, like he knows, and immediately reaches out to link his fingers through Mingyu’s. Mingyu doesn’t miss the way Jeonghan’s eyes flicker down to their joined hands.

“We do,” his boyfriend says. “We, uh, go way back, I guess.”

Jeonghan snorts. “Do you remember the potions master ex I mentioned?”

Mingyu’s jaw drops. “That was _Joshua_?” he asks, astounded. “Wait, you guys _dated_?”

“ ‘bout a year,” Jeonghan shrugs, at the same time Joshua hastens to say, “Only when I was going to school overseas.”

Mingyu looks at them. “Is that gonna be a problem?” he asks, cautiously. “Because Shua-hyung really needs that dragon’s blood, Jeonghan, his work is being sabotaged by a co-worker.”

“Why would it be a problem?” Jeonghan asks at once, offended. “I’m an old ex-boyfriend, not a monster.”

“Just checking!” Mingyu says, raising his free hand weakly. “Seokmin had an awful ex who cursed all his clothes to try and strangle him when he broke up with them for good! People like that exist!”

“Oh, I know,” Jeonghan says. He looks at Joshua, then at Mingyu, and then shakes his head. “Well, c’mon, let’s not dally. This is time-sensitive, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Joshua says, flipping into work mode almost too quickly. Mingyu places a hand on the small of his back, gentle with his touch, and when Jeonghan turns to leave the room he leans in and presses a quick kiss to Joshua’s cheek.

“Let’s go see what he’s got?”

Joshua nods, managing a small smile. “Yeah. Sorry, Mingyu, I was just… very startled.”

“I get it. Who expects to run into an ex in some weird potions stock house in the suburbs?”

The right answer is nobody, but the knowledge still makes Mingyu’s brain swim as they follow Jeonghan down into the basement and through the rest of his stock. What kind of a crazy coincidence was this? His old fuckbuddy and his current boyfriend, exes?

He tries to imagine Jeonghan and Joshua together, younger and in college, according to their self-professed timeline. He has no idea what Jeonghan used to look like back then, but he’s seen a few of Joshua’s older pictures, photos of when he was still getting his degree, sweet-cheeked and bright-eyed. They were overseas together, in the same school. Did they have cute little coffee dates? Did they pull all-nighters together in the library, buried under piles and piles of textbooks and diagrams? Joshua was as much of a looker back then as he is now, and Mingyu is certain that Jeonghan has never had an ugly haircut in his life. Were they the ‘it’ couple on campus, turning heads and capturing hearts when they strolled through the quad together?

For some reason, the thought of that doesn’t make him nearly as jealous as he thought he would be.

He’s not sure what to make of it.

Joshua is uncorking and dabbing a bit of blood out with a gloved finger when Mingyu mentally checks back in, watching the dark red roll down the rubber.

“It’s perfect,” he says, awed. “It’s—It’s even better than what the academy had in stock, actually. How much for all of it?”

Jeonghan takes the jug, weighing it with a practiced hand. “Twenty thousand. Packaging and seal included.”

Joshua’s eyes almost bug out of his head; the expression is probably reflected in Mingyu’s face. Dragon blood, sold for anything less than fifty grand? Unheard of.

“ _Twenty thousand?_ You can’t even buy half a pound of asphodel with that, are you kidding me? I thought you run a business?” Joshua asks, accusingly. Jeonghan laughs.

“I do! Quite well, in fact. Which is why I can sell favourably to an old friend at the behest of my favourite dongsaeng, who pleaded for my help so vehemently on your behalf. It’s a great deal, I’ll have you know.”

“Shut up,” Joshua says, agitated. “How much does it really cost, Jeonghan? Stop playing me for a fool.”

Jeonghan’s expression shutters slightly. “Joshuji, I would never.”

“Then don’t lowball me, for god's sake,” Joshua huffs. “Take me seriously, please.”

“I do,” Jeonghan hurries to say. Mingyu watches in awe; he’s never seen the dealer look so flustered before. “But you’d be doing me a favour as well, taking this off my hands. I bartered this for a lower price than anticipated too, so I’m making a profit either way. Also, I can’t store literally anything else around this stupid jug, dragon’s blood is so volitile with literally every other potion ingredient in existence. It takes up so much space.”

“I’m deeply aware,” Joshua says, with only a playful pinch of sarcasm, and Jeonghan shakes his head, something like a fond smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“Right. Potions master. Silly me.”

Joshua looks at the jug, thoughtful, and then pulls out a checkbook from his bag. “The Grandmaster authorized ninety thousand for the purchase of dragon’s blood when I first put in my request. I’ll write you out for eighty-nine, just so they can’t say shit about me buying this again. How’s that sound?”

Jeonghan’s expression is unreadable as Joshua takes out a pen, tip poised over the paper. “Sounds great to me.”

The transaction goes quickly; Jeonghan busies himself packing up the blood for transportation, Joshua goes into the living room upstairs to call his department, and Mingyu hovers between the floors, watching them. This definitely is definitely an interesting turn of events, but the most interesting part of all is how he’s more curious than bothered or territorial.

Jeonghan sees them out, dragon’s blood boxed in a crate with dozens of protective spells wrapped around it. He’s polite as he bids them goodbye, and Mingyu doesn’t miss the way his gaze lingers on Joshua for half a second longer before he quietly shuts the door behind them.

Joshua is silent too, for the most part, on the way home. They drop by the academy so he could store the blood in one of the secure lockers in the dungeons (triple-locked, with strict instructions left to the night guard to not open the locker for anyone but Joshua), and then Joshua drove them back to his condo for the night after Mingyu insisted that he brought his laptop with him and could work from home the next day.

“You seem surprisingly cool about everything that just happened,” his boyfriend says, carefully, as they wash up for the evening together. He looks hesitant breaching the topic, fingers fidgeting with the tie around his bathrobe. Mingyu gives his face one more rinse before shutting the water off.

“I am cool about it,” he says. “Did I do something to make you think I wasn’t?”

“No, not at all,” Joshua says hastily. “Just… most people would be kinda weirded out about it. Or they’d be asking for answers.”

“Well, I am curious,” Mingyu shrugs. He snags one of the fluffy towels off the rack and dries his face and hair with it. Everything always smells so nice in Joshua’s apartment—seabreeze fresh with a hint of sunshine, if he had to describe the mixture of scents. “But it was a surprise for all of us, and you guys don’t seem to have any bad blood between each other?”

“We didn’t,” Joshua shakes his head. “Just a bit of a sad falling out, I think. We argued a bit before we broke up, mostly over how Jeonghan wanted to drop out of school. We were both training to be potions masters.”

“I find that seriously hard to believe, but in hindsight, that kinda explains why he’s so knowledgeable about all the ingredients. Way more than an average dealer, anyway.”

Joshua laughs. “Well, Jeonghan _is_ smart. He was top of the year with me. I think he just never liked the academics of it, never enjoyed the rigid atmosphere and work we had to do. That was when we decided that maybe we weren’t the best match. In the end, he left in the middle of our final year and moved back home, and I graduated and found work there. It was surreal, seeing him again.” His eyes darted over to Mingyu. “It was even more surreal knowing he’s the one you’ve been fucking before me.”

Mingyu can’t help the blush that heats up his cheeks. “It just feels like a crazy coincidence.”

“You’re telling me,” Joshua says. “Of all the people… but it worked out, in the end. He had exactly what I needed, and I’ve never been more grateful that you still kept in touch with him. Thank you for your help today, Mingyu. I thought I was screwed for sure.”

“I wouldn’t have let that happen to you,” Mingyu says fiercely, hurrying over to hug Joshua close. Joshua hugs back, squeezing him tightly around the middle. “You’re a brilliant potions master, Shua-hyung, and I’ll be damned if that stupid co-worker of yours tries to take sabotage your hard work. She better watch herself.”

“Mm,” Joshua sighs. “My big, brave, scary boyfriend, off to defend my honour.”

Mingyu growls playfully, biting lightly on the shell of Joshua’s ear. Joshua shudders, and Mingyu grins, smoothing a large hand down his back.

“Only the best for my Shua-hyung.”

Joshua leans back, eyes narrowing slightly before he hooks his fingers into the loops of Mingyu’s belt, tugging him out of the bathroom and into the living room. One of the perks of having no roommates, Mingyu muses, when Joshua hits the light dimmer and pushes Mingyu down to sink into the plush cushions of his couch. Every surface of the condo was fair game.

Joshua unzips his pants and drags everything off him with practiced movements; Mingyu just lifts his hips and lets it all slide off, leaving him naked from the waist down. His dick is already starting to catch up with the turn events, slowly getting hard under Joshua’s smooth palm and deliberate touches. All the while, he keeps his eyes fixated on Mingyu’s face, cheek resting against his thigh, lips pursed in an attractive pout. It’s astounding how demure he makes himself look, when all the while Mingyu is acutely aware that the one with the power in this scenario is certainly Joshua.

“Let me show you how thankful I am,” Joshua whispers, pressing a kiss to the crown of his dick. Mingyu whimpers, his whole body jerking, and Joshua laughs, light and airy in contrast to how sensual everything is. “What do you want? Should I tease you with my tongue, until you’re begging me to let you come? Should I keep my mouth on you all night long, until you’re utterly spent?”

Both options sound incredible, and Mingyu’s brain is wading through molasses, trying to come up with any coherent phrase of affirmation. And then Joshua laughs, quirking an eyebrow. “Or, maybe, you should tell me what you and Jeonghan used to do, when you were still sleeping together.”

Mingyu’s mind goes white. He can feel his jaw dropping, stunned to silence, and his grip against the throw blanket tightens so much his knuckles crack. Joshua waits for him, stroking oh so slowly up and down his cock all the while, patient in ways Mingyu has never been.

“Is that alright? Can I ask you that?”

“Y-Yes,” Mingyu whispers, covering his face. Immediately, fingers close around one of his wrists and pulled his hand away.

“Look at me and tell me. Tell me what you liked when you were fuckbuddies.” Joshua changes up the angle of his hands, every brush purposeful and pointed, and Mingyu almost melts into the cushions.

“He—He usually takes the lead,” Mingyu stammers. “He likes to take charge, no matter what we’re doing. Even when he’s bottoming, he’s still bossing me around.”

Joshua grins. “That sounds like Jeonghan.”

“But he’s good at it,” Mingyu admits. “He’s attentive, likes to tease a bit, b-but he still made me feel good.” Joshua jerks him off, faster, and Mingyu exhales brokenly. “He’s really, really good.”

“I would’ve loved to see you bottom for him,” Joshua says, contemplative, and white-hot want spears Mingyu through the chest and down into the pit of his stomach. “I bet you looked perfect on your back, legs spread open and begging for cock. Did he ever tie you up?”

“N-No?” Mingyu gasps, tensing. Holy shit, holy shit, _what_ —

Joshua leaned in to lick a long stripe from the base of his dick to the tip, easing the friction of his motions, and smiled up at Mingyu, wicked.

“He used to tie me up in bed when we wanted to get adventurous. Had my hands bound to the headboard with his tie, a scarf, or some sexy red rope, and he wouldn’t let me touch myself, wouldn’t let me down until I came on his dick.” 

It’s almost too much to bear, almost too painful at this point. Mingyu forgoes his death grip on the throw and grasps Joshua by the arm instead, wordlessly pleading, and his boyfriend takes the hint, speeding up his hand and moving to rub the tip of Mingyu’s dick against the soft exterior of his cheek.

“Once, he handcuffed me to a chair in our apartment, stripped everything off while I still had my suit from a job interview on, and rode me for an hour straight. I couldn’t touch him, couldn’t kiss him, couldn’t even hold him. I just watched him bounce on my lap until he gave in and finally let me fuck him. We did it on the floor, right there, and didn’t even make it to bed.”

“God, Shua-hyung, please, _please_.” Mingyu’s not quite sure what he’s pleading for; all he knows is that if he doesn’t come right now, he’s going to pass out.

Joshua takes the head of his cock in his mouth, sucks, and Mingyu loses it. The velvet warmth is so damn much, and Joshua pulls off just as ropes of sticky white spill onto him, landing across his forehead, nose, and chin. Mingyu’s thighs are shaking as he comes down, blinking dazedly at his boyfriend.

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry hyung, let me—let me get—”

“I’m okay,” Joshua soothes, leaning over to the side table to grab a few tissues. “No harm done. That was really sexy.”

“You’re telling me,” Mingyu breathes out, echoing Joshua’s sentiment from earlier. “That was fucking hot.”

“I’m glad you think so,” Joshua says, standing and helping Mingyu up despite his jellied knees. It’s late, and when they slip into Joshua’s room, Mingyu thought he’d want to collapse against the fluffy pillows and pass out right away. But right now, he’s lying on his side of the bed, watching Joshua change into his sleep pants and a t-shirt while he sports a semi.

Joshua catches him staring when he turns, and he shakes his head fondly at Mingyu.

“Don’t worry about me, it’s getting late. I can jack off in the shower tomorrow morning or something.”

“You can,” Mingyu agrees, and when Joshua climbs into bed and moves to slide under the sheets, he reaches out and pins his boyfriend’s hip down onto the mattress with one swift motion. “Or, I can show you my lack of a gag reflex and help you take the edge off right now.”

Joshua inhales sharply, hips canting up unconsciously, and Mingyu grins toothily at him.

“Don’t hold back,” is all he says before he tugs the front of Joshua’s pants down and slides his cock deep into his mouth.

Joshua lets out half-groan, half-shout, twitching to life against Mingyu’s tongue. If there’s really anything Mingyu prides himself in, it’s how good he’s gotten at giving head over the years. He puts pressure where he knows it’ll feel good, doesn’t let his hands idle, and swallows repeatedly once he’s gotten Joshua all the way down his throat, living for the way Joshua thrashes and tangles his fingers in a punishing grip in Mingyu’s hair.

It’s not a surprise he doesn’t last, spurred on by the fact that Mingyu doesn’t let up even when Joshua heaves himself onto his elbows, warning Mingyu with a stammer, only to go wide-eyed and make the most beautiful ‘o’ face when Mingyu simply takes him deeper, hands holding trembling thighs steady, swallowing and swallowing until there’s nothing left when he pulls off.

“I think,” Joshua whispers, when Mingyu returns after rinsing out his mouth in the ensuite, “I saw the gates of heaven before I came back down.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Mingyu beams, tumbling into bed. Joshua reaches for him at once, murmuring sleepily.

They’re both out like a light within minutes.

* * *

Things settle comfortably again, after that.

Joshua goes in and fixes up his complicated potion without further problems and lodges a formal complaint about his co-worker with his fellowship, the PM academic association, and the Director of the Academy. Mingyu goes to work as usual, gets a fancy new client and does a few presentations with other brokers in his department about their quarterlies. Minghao tells him they’re low on gurdyroot and griffin claws in his labs, and Mingyu makes a trip down to Jeonghan’s to pick some up. Jeonghan was attending to another customer when he came, but he still wrapped everything up for Mingyu and gave him a surprisingly sweet hug before he left.

He and Joshua go on more dinner dates at Junhui’s restaurant, take up biking as a hobby on weekends at Joshua’s suggestion, and go on a double date with one of Mingyu’s juniors, Hansol, who wants to slowly introduce his new boyfriend Seungkwan to the rest of the friend group.

Crockpot accidentally gets into one of Minghao’s vitamin containers one night and eats everything in sight, prompting the three frantic and hysterical roommates to rush their cat to the animal hospital immediately, sobbing over their cat as he goes into surgery. Joshua shows up at one in the morning in sweats and his old university hoodie, armed with a tray of ice americanos and snacks to help keep them awake, and then drove them all home when the vet came out with good news three hours later. Then he buys a sturdier container for Minghao once Crockpot makes a full recovery looking no worse for wear, excluding a shaved patch down his belly and a cone that he absolutely did _not_ appreciate. Minghao proceeded to threaten Mingyu to never let his boyfriend go, under the promise of a very slow and painful death.

A few other small local potion breweries make requests from Mingyu, and he continued to either arrange delivery from Jeonghan’s stocks or drop by whenever he had the chance. Joshua, now no longer dealing with the nightmare of a co-worker, gets another big commission and Mingyu reaches out to Jeonghan again. They turn up on a Sunday afternoon together and Jeonghan helps them load crate after crate of carefully sealed death caps into the back of a rented truck, all of them sweating under the sun on a cloudless day.

The whole situation is made worse by the fact that Jeonghan decided to wear a sleeveless shirt that day, one with rounded arm holes that gives Mingyu flashes of his side and chest whenever he bends to pick up crates.

More than once he catches Joshua’s gaze trailing after Jeonghan, in an eerily similar fashion to his own. It makes him warm in a way that has nothing to do with the afternoon heat, all-encompassing and heady enough that it makes him bold in ways he normally isn’t. That’s the only explanation he’s got for sidling up to Joshua’s side under the pretense of helping him strap the crates down, whispering in his boyfriend’s ear, asking if he liked what he saw on Jeonghan, if he caught sight of that new tattoo on his shoulder blade when he lifted an arm to stretch. Joshua had shivered, glancing back and holding Mingyu’s deliberate gaze until he eventually nodded, quietly admitting he did.

Something seemed to settle in Mingyu then, and he didn’t even realize how internally tormented he’d felt until they went back to Joshua’s condo that night, and Joshua had dragged him down for a kiss before they’d even made it to the shower, his lips pillow-soft against Mingyu’s, tasting faintly of sweat and peppermint gum. They fucked over the arm of the sofa in the living room, only a handful of steps away from the front door, and Joshua had leaned over to mouth against Mingyu’s neck as he fucked him hard, asking if he caught the way Jeonghan watched Mingyu’s arms flex when he lifted the hem of his shirt to wipe at the sweat on his face, and stayed hypnotized by the way Mingyu later tilted his head back and practically drained a water bottle in one go, the column of his throat working furiously to keep up.

And then Joshua had asked if he’d like it for Jeonghan to be here too, with them like this, maybe talking dirty to Mingyu while Joshua fucked him, or lent his hands holding Joshua down between them while they teased him mercilessly, or helped guide Jeonghan to his knees between the two of them, gorgeous face tilted up, hands held behind his back, lips parted and eyes glazed over with lust as they touched themselves and made him wait.

Between choked gasps of want and many, many loving kisses to his boyfriend, Mingyu says _yes_.

It’s good, getting that out of the way. It takes a visible weight off Joshua's shoulders as well, and there’s a sparkle in his eye for the next week or so after that talk. Mingyu loves how relaxed his boyfriend looks.

They go to work, and go out together. Joshua clears out two drawers in his dresser so Mingyu could start leaving clothes at his place. They buy a few houseplants, and celebrate their seventh month together.

* * *

Seokmin gets a promotion, a long-awaited and a deeply overdue one; which is the general consensus of their group.

He’s bashful about it and insists it’s no big deal, but none of them allow him to downplay his achievements like that. Minghao books them a booth and gets them bottle service at Seokmin’s favourite club, Mingyu orders the fanciest cake he could get his hands on, and Seungkwan, now a permanent member of their friend group and alarmingly close to Seokmin and Soonyoung despite knowing each other for a very short period of time, picked out a beautiful wristwatch that tells both the time and predicts the weather as a group gift.

It’s a wonderful night out—Mingyu polished off a bottle of cabernet with Minghao and Seokmin before picking up Joshua and Junhui at the metro station. Soonyoung, Hansol, and Seungkwan were already at the club when they arrived, dressed to the nines with trays of shots lined up before them. He drinks happily with the rest of his friends, eating cake and snacking on appetizers and teasing Seokmin when he cries a little bit at their joint gift. Joshua never strays too far from his side, always leaving a large hand on Mingyu’s thigh, the weight of his rings pressing into the skin peeking out from his ripped jeans. Mingyu leaves his arm over the back of the booth, open for Joshua to recline against at any time while giving a pointed message to the stray eyes that wandered over: this man is with _me_.

They’re all working their way through a bottle of champagne when Mingyu spots a rather familiar face at the corner of the bar closest to them.

At first, he thought he was seeing things, yet upon closer inspection it is indeed Jeonghan, but it’s Jeonghan with a new dye job; chestnut brown hair now coloured a deep, luscious red. It’s styled neatly, although a few strands are escaping the hairstyle from the humidity of the club. His outfit isn’t very eye-catching, but it is beautiful, the overly large striped silk shirt hanging off him in a way that screams effortlessly sexy. His pants look painted on his legs. His boots are ankle-length and polished, decorated with tiny silver chains. When he turns, Mingyu could see a thin black choker around his neck, with a delicate little hoop set in the middle of it.

“Shua-hyung,” he says, nudging his boyfriend lightly. “Look who’s at the bar.”

Joshua turns, and his eyes widen when he spots Jeonghan right away. His expression morphs into one of concern when Jeonghan finally gets what he ordered—four tiny shot glasses filled with clear liquid—and proceeds to angrily down each of them in quick succession. He slams the last one onto the counter with more force than necessary and a scowl on his face. Mingyu frowns.

“D’you think he’s okay?”

“Only one way to find out,” Joshua says, and then shouts across the noise. “Hey! Yoon Jeonghan!”

Their friends turn, startled by Joshua’s voice. Jeonghan straightens and spins around, eyebrows furrowed in confusion until his gaze lands on them sitting together. Mingyu watches with interest as several expressions appear on Jeonghan’s face: first surprise, then apprehension, and then something vulnerable, which is quickly replaced by calm openness. He crosses over to the booth in a few quick strides and nods at everyone present.

“Joshuji,” he teases, lip quirking up at the way Joshua immediately huffs at the nickname. “What a nice surprise. Mingyu, it’s good to see you too.”

“Small world,” Mingyu grins, and Jeonghan gives a half-laugh, the kind that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “What are you doing here, hyung?”

Jeonghan lifts a careless shoulder, glancing behind him. “Had a date.”

“You’re on a date?” Joshua repeats, sitting upright. Mingyu has to place a soothing hand subtly against his back. “Here? Right now?”

Jeonghan arches a fine brow, but he doesn’t comment on Joshua’s sudden interest. “ _Had_ a date. It was awful. I didn’t stick around for very long.”

“That sucks,” Seungkwan pipes up, sympathetic. “Was it a lack of hygiene? A set of wandering eyes?”

Jeonghan laughs. “A mouth-breather,” he says. “That, and some pretty inappropriate comments for a first date, if you catch my drift.”

“ _Eugh_. Yeah, that’ll do it. I’m Boo Seungkwan, by the way. Are you a friend of Joshua-hyung and Mingyu-hyung?”

“Yoon Jeonghan,” Jeonghan replies, and his eyes flicker over to the couple briefly before he answers. “I’d say I am, but I call Mingyu far too many names for him to really take me seriously.”

“ _You’re_ Jeonghan?” Minghao interrupts, eyes wide behind his stylish glasses. “Our labs buy from you all the time.”

“Oh? Thank you very much for the business, then,” Jeonghan says, looking pleased. “Hope you’re all enjoying your evening; an outing with friends, I presume?”

“Seokminnie got a promotion!” Soonyoung shouts, grabbing one of Seokmin’s hands and waving him around. “He’s a little plastered, but that’s what happens when you finally get the job you deserve!”

“Congratulations,” Jeonghan says, perfectly polite. “Well, I won’t keep you all—”

“Join us!” Seokmin says enthusiastically. “Any friend of Shua-hyung and Mingyu’s is our friend too!”

“Oh, no, I couldn’t possibly—”

“Here, sit with us,” Mingyu cuts in, and everyone scuttles down the bench as one, making an extra spot at the end of the booth for Jeonghan, who looks adorably tormented before he slides into the space next to Joshua. He’s close enough for Mingyu’s fingertips to graze against his shoulder too.

“Well,” Jeonghan says, amused. “Next round’s on me, then, as a congratulations to the man of the hour.”

Jeonghan is the type that knows exactly what to say, and when to say it. He gives the bare bones of his job when prompted, sticks to his word and orders another tray of drinks for them when a waitress walks by, and then gets swept up in _rock-paper-scissors-shots_ with the others for a good half hour. Then, when they’re all sufficiently drunk, Soonyoung announces that he _has_ to dance, and everybody starts piling onto the dance floor together. Joshua waves them off, insisting he wants to sober up a little, and Mingyu has boyfriend obligations to stay, of course. Jeonghan doesn’t move from his seat either, and watches as Soonyoung immediately launches himself onto the dance floor and starts swinging his arms.

“Ugh, youth nowadays,” Jeonghan says, rubbing his eyes blearily. “I don’t know where they get that kind of energy.”

“You and me both,” Joshua sighs, looking so adorably sleepy that Mingyu couldn’t help but press a kiss to his cheek, making Joshua laugh. “Gyu, stop, you smell like vodka sodas.”

“Oh, never mind, you two are just as bad,” Jeonghan rolls his eyes, lounging back against his seat. He gets a rather faraway look in his eyes, staring off into the distance at the seat across from them, and Mingyu doesn’t quite like that expression on his face. He leans over, propping his chin up on his hand.

“So. A date, huh? What happened to the no-attachments, free-spirited man of the night?”

“Ha ha ha,” Jeonghan deadpans, and again, that vulnerable flicker passes over his face. “Just because I like hooking up doesn’t mean I won’t go on a date every once in a while.”

“Have you been on a lot of dates recently then?” Joshua asks. Jeonghan is quiet for a moment before he shrugs.

“Five or six, maybe. Nothing really interesting. I just make them pay for my drink and then I go home and buy fried chicken on the way back.”

“What’s ‘not interesting’?” Joshua pushes.

“I dunno. Some are too chatty, I suppose. Others are too dull. Some far too forward, even for me. If they don’t strike my fancy, then I just won’t bother.”

“So what does, then?”

“Does what?”

“Strike your fancy,” Joshua repeats, and Jeonghan’s throat bobs visibly as he swallows. It makes the little hoop shift with the movement, and Mingyu feels his eyes zero in on that.

“We dated for a year. Shouldn’t you know, Joshuji?”

Deflecting, Mingyu thinks, watching the way Jeonghan’s shoulders curl in on himself a little, the way he starts fiddling with his hair. He rests his hand against Joshua’s waist, quietly sending him a signal, before leaning over and looking Jeonghan in the eye.

“I think you might be into the tall and handsome types. Talkative, but knows when to shut up. Loves a good cuddle, especially after a nice round of sex.”

Jeonghan’s eyes widen. His mouth opens, but no words come out. Mingyu ploughs on.

“But I think you might also be into someone soft and gentle. The type that’s always sweet on you, but at the same time, has got a bit of a mischievous streak in him as well. The kind who looks absolutely mesmerizing with a good lip colour on—” he reaches over and lightly squeezes Joshua’s jaw with his fingers, letting his thumb brush over the bold red his boyfriend had swiped on before they left. “—and the kind to look at you and want you the same way he wants his boyfriend.”

Jeonghan looks frozen in his seat, fingers digging into the fabric of the cushion behind him. For the first time ever Mingyu has ever known him, he looks anxious, almost distraught.

“Mingyu,” he says, leaning in, voice low and serious. “Whatever it is you’re implying, I swear to you, I don’t—I’m not—I’m not _looking_ at your boyfriend, for god’s sake. I’m not like that. I wouldn’t do that to either of you.”

“Is it so bad, though?” Joshua asks, and Jeonghan jerks. “Is it so bad to want us, Hannie?”

 _Hannie_. The nickname makes the coil in his gut wound tighter, especially at the way the syllables fall from Joshua’s lips. Hannie. It sounds beautiful.

“What are you saying?”

Joshua reaches out to cup Jeonghan’s cheek, thumb pressing against the corner of his lips. He’s slow and deliberate enough with his movements that Jeonghan could move away at any time. And Mingyu could see the war behind Jeonghan’s eyes, the struggle to brush it off or to stay and accept.

And in the end, Jeonghan doesn’t move away. He watches as Joshua leans in, tilts his head, and presses their lips together.

Mingyu’s breath catches in his chest, and his hand tightens on Joshua’s waist. Jeonghan’s eyes flutter shut, his hand moving stiltedly to touch Joshua’s arm that’s resting against his leg. Joshua’s tongue darts out, licking, lightly teasing, and that’s incentive enough for Jeonghan to really kiss back now, mouth moving with familiarity against Joshua’s, letting the kiss deepen until they’re both moaning softly, breaths caught in snatches when their lips part for a second.

They look ridiculously good together.

Jeonghan eventually pulls back first, and he meets Mingyu’s gaze head-on, like a challenge. Like he’s daring Mingyu to say anything, to throw something maybe, as though asking _are you sure this is what you want? To see another man kiss your boyfriend?_

To which Mingyu wants to answer, yes, absolutely, as long as it’s you, Yoon Jeonghan.

Instead, he lowers his hand to take Jeonghan’s in his own, and smiles when the other man blinks in astonishment. “I think we should get out of here.”

* * *

They unanimously choose Joshua’s place, because it’s the comfortable middle ground for them all, and even though Mingyu’s is technically closer, he has two roommates and a cat—hardly the stuff of sexy encounters.

Jeonghan insists on buying a coffee from a street vendor on their way out, and they pass the styrofoam cup between them as they ride in the taxi, letting the caffeine sober them up enough to make it into the living room without any problems.

Jeonghan whistles lowly as he takes in the spacious condo and adjoining kitchen-dining area, the dimmed stacked ceiling light and the flat screen television, with box sets of movies organized on the bookshelves. The view at night is also incredible—living on the 17th floor lends to a vast overview of the busy city centre below. “Swanky, Joshuji. I like it.”

“You own a literal house,” Joshua laughs, sliding Mingyu’s leather jacket off his shoulders. That leaves him with only his sheer top on, pale pink in colour, and much more translucent now that there’s a bit more lighting than in the club. Jeonghan watches him parade through the kitchen, snacking on some fruit left out and searching for the jug of filtered water.

Mingyu walks up behind him and drops a kiss to the back of his neck, relishing in the way Jeonghan shivers minutely. “He looks good, doesn’t he?”

“He always does,” Jeonghan answers, absent-minded. Mingyu smiles.

“Good answer.”

Jeonghan is quiet for a moment, and Mingyu lets him take his time, choosing to comb his fingers through the beautiful red locks while he waits. He can wait.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot.”

“Why am I here?”

“Because we want you to be. And we're kind of hoping you want to be here too.”

“As an extra body in your bed for the night?” Jeonghan turns, and his hair slips from Mingyu’s fingers. His eyes blaze brilliantly as he stares up at Mingyu, the faint height difference still making him tilt his chin. “Are you two looking for a third to spice up your sex life? Don’t tell me you’re already getting boring in bed, Mingyu.”

“Not exactly,” Mingyu says slowly. “I think I should make it abundantly clear. There is no room between Shua-hyung and I for anyone else—”

Jeonghan’s eyes narrow, hurt flashing through them, but Mingyu catches his chin with his index finger and forces them to keep eye contact.

“—that isn’t you.”

“You—what?”

“We want you, Jeonghan-hyung,” Mingyu says, tilting his head. “Just you, to be with us. We’ve wanted this for a while.”

“Oh.” Jeonghan looks lost for a moment as he collects himself. “You want me.”

“Yes.”

“With the two of you.”

“Exactly.”

“You want me to join you both. Relationship-wise.”

“Right on the money,” Mingyu grins, and leans forward to nose at Jeonghan’s temple. “Ah, hyung is so smart.”

“Oh, fuck off,” Jeonghan grumbles, but his smack to Mingyu’s shoulder lacks force and intent. “You two are _assholes_.”

“You know, I kind of like you like this,” Joshua says from the kitchen, and they both turn to see him leaning against the island, smirking as he pops a grape into his mouth. “I’ve always wondered when the day I’d catch Yoon Jeonghan off guard would be. It looks like my wish has finally come true.”

“Watch it,” Jeonghan warns, dragging his gaze down the front of Joshua’s chest, completely on display because of his shirt and the way he rests his elbows up against the marble. “I know you like to think you’re a serious hot shot, being a real potions master and all with a fancy new apartment, but don’t think I’ve forgotten all the things that make you tick.”

“I’d be offended if you did,” Joshua retorts. He walks up to them, stepping closer and closer until Jeonghan has to back up, bumping against Mingyu’s chest. Mingyu’s hands automatically land on Jeonghan’s waist, admiring the litheness of his torso hidden behind the billowy fabric of his silk shirt. “But since you’re a guest in my house tonight, I’ll play nice. What do you want to do, Hannie?”

“You’re asking me?” Jeonghan snorts. He flicks a hand over the front of Joshua’s shirt, brushing ever so lightly against his nipple. Mingyu watches, fascinated, as Joshua’s whole body tenses for a second.

“You have options, you know. I’m curious about what you and Mingyu would look like together. Both of you can be so ridiculously stubborn sometimes, I’m sure it’ll be fun watching the two of you fight over each other in bed, trying to get the upper hand. And I’m sure Mingyu will end up beautifully underneath you in the end, all leg and smooth skin for you to touch.”

Mingyu bites back a whimper at the thought of that, Jeonghan above him and Joshua sitting off to the side, watching as Mingyu loses himself entirely.

“Or maybe you’d like to see me tied up again? I remember how into that you were. There’s probably a tie or two I wouldn’t mind sacrificing from my closet.” Joshua smiles, eyes crinkling, and Mingyu can physically feel the way Jeonghan’s breathing picks up at that. It’ll be a sight to behold, and Mingyu already has one in mind—a rich, royal purple piece that Joshua wore to the fundraiser they first met at all those years ago. The colour had been amazing against his suit then, and he’s certain it’d look amazing on his wrists now.

“But you know, as nice as all those things sound, maybe we shouldn’t go for that. You are the newcomer in this house, in case you forgot. Maybe I don’t want to see you in charge.”

Jeonghan’s breath hitches, and Mingyu squeezes his hands together, his grip hot and possessive on Jeonghan’s waist. Joshua inches closer, leaning around to whisper into Jeonghan’s ear. He winks at Mingyu, devilish.

“What if I said I want to see you on Mingyu’s lap, holding on for dear life as you fuck yourself on him? Crying and moaning about how big he is. I could tell you all about it; I know you're basically allergic to taking it, but Mingyu makes it worth it every. Single. Time."

"I do like hearing how good I am," Mingyu laughs, nuzzling at the baby hairs on the other side of Jeonghan's neck. He also likes the way Jeonghan stands frozen between them, hands clutching at thin air, uncertain of where to put them. He takes pity on the older and urges him to place his palms flat against Joshua's chest.

"Maybe we shouldn't overwhelm him, Shua-hyung. Maybe we should be the ones taking real good care of him, making him feel so good he'll be remembering this night for weeks."

"I like that," Joshua lilts. "Jeonghannie? What do you think? Should we bring you to bed and get you comfortable?"

"I think there should be more action and less talking," Jeonghan manages, still somehow composed, and that's the Jeonghan Mingyu knows and loves so much—stubborn, proud, and cool as a cucumber.

He can't wait to take him apart.

* * *

The only (good) mistake of the night was, perhaps, eventually letting both Jeonghan and Joshua team up against him.

Underneath his height and broad shoulders and muscle, Mingyu is a softie—loves being babied by his hyungs, loves getting praise for being good, hates being ignored or brushed aside. Joshua knows this, and frequently gets playful with it, prodding and cajoling Mingyu until he’s red-faced and whining, tugging Joshua’s hands and draping himself all over his boyfriend until he gets the attention he wants. Jeonghan also knows this, but unlike Joshua, he leverages that knowledge with almost scary precision, keeping Mingyu teetering on the edge of either bathing in flattery or deflating with a huge, pitiful pout. 

He’s on the side of the pouting right now, unfortunately, kneeling on the cushy carpet at the edge of the bed between Jeonghan’s legs and letting Jeonghan play with his tongue using his fingers. All the while, he’s making out with Joshua, the two of them kissing open-mouthed and messily above Mingyu. They sit together on the mattress, Joshua’s knees folded under him while he works methodically at the buttons on Jeonghan’s shirt, fingers trailing over bare skin, fleeting and sensual.

Mingyu whimpers, working his tongue over Jeonghan’s fingers, but receives no attention from either of them. He knows they’re doing it on purpose, pretending like he’s not there at the moment, lost in their own little world, but.

It’s so fucking hot.

Jeonghan’s index finger slides along the middle of his tongue, testing, and Mingyu shudders, his hands gripping Jeonghan’s thighs tightly. Jeonghan lets out a muffled laugh and pulls back from the kiss.

“Aw, poor baby. Not enough attention for you?”

“Please,” Mingyu groans. “You two are being so mean.”

“But it’s been so long since we got to catch up,” Joshua says, all fake innocence and sugar-coated words. He slides Jeonghan’s shirt off him, admiring the smooth expanse of skin. “You can’t blame me for wanting to feel Jeonghannie again, right?”

“Yes, but—”

“Be good,” Joshua interrupts, gentle but firm, and Mingyu settles, dropping his cheek against Jeonghan’s knee with a sigh. The aircon turns on, and he shudders as a breath of chilled air washes over his bare back. “Won’t you be good and take care of Jeonghan too?”

Mingyu perks up. “What do you want me to do?”

The other two exchange looks, almost like they’re communicating telepathically. It’s unnerving, but it makes anticipation coil nicely in his chest as he waits, drawing circles on Jeonghan’s thigh, admiring the elegant curve of Joshua’s lips from where he sits.

“I think we’d like to be inside you tonight, Mingyu,” Jeonghan finally says, eyes flashing as he looks down. “Would you like that too?”

“Fuck, yes, please,” Mingyu breathes, feeling his dick twitch almost embarassingly in agreement. He loves the way both Joshua and Jeonghan’s gazes grow heavy with want, watching him twist with anticipation for what’s to come.

“Lube and condoms?”

“Second drawer,” Joshua says, and while Jeonghan leans over to dig through the night stand, Mingyu lets Joshua pull him up onto the bed, working his pants off and tossing them somewhere off to the side.

“Ah—I should mention,” Mingyu says, feeling the heat in his face, and Joshua raises an eyebrow at him. “I, uh, already prepped. Before we went to the club.” The cabernet had been really good, Minghao had put his 'baddest bitch in the club' playlist on, and he had been _really_ feeling himself while picking out his outfit, so, it’s all a logical progression, isn’t it?

“You didn’t,” Joshua exhales. “Oh, you were all set for tonight, aren’t you?”

“And it turned out even better than anticipated,” Mingyu replies, glancing over at Jeonghan, who blinks in surprise.

“No arguments there,” Joshua agrees, kissing Mingyu lightly on the cheek. “How do you want him, Hannie?”

Mingyu holds his breath, watching Jeonghan turn one of the foil packets between his fingers before he smirks, dragging his gaze down the length of Mingyu’s body.

“Kinda want to watch him fuck himself on me. He’d look really nice like that, wouldn’t he, Shua?”

“Oh, I know _exactly_ how nice he’d look.”

It’s devastating, listening to the two of them discuss what they want to do with him, but Mingyu appreciates the subtle way they still try to keep him connected; Jeonghan keeps a hand on his knee as he slowly jerks himself to hardness, and Joshua presses constant kisses everywhere he could reach—along Mingyu’s shoulder, on the sides of his neck, down the length of his spine. When Jeonghan finally settles back and gets comfy against the pillows, body language open and inviting, Mingyu almost falls over scrambling to climb over him.

“Easy,” Jeonghan says, steadying him with a laugh that soon turns into a breathless sigh once Mingyu sinks down on him, thighs tense with the effort of keeping himself upright. “There we go, that’s good, no need to rush, Mingyu.”

Mingyu trembles, and Joshua murmurs soothingly and keeps his hands on Mingyu’s waist, reminding him to take it slow. It’s helpful, grounding, and when he bottoms out he tilts forward with a sigh, hair falling into his eyes and hands pressed against Jeonghan’s ribs for support.

“How is it?” Joshua asks, kissing him behind the ear. “Feel good? Feel full?”

“So full,” Mingyu groans. “Shua-hyung, I—”

Jeonghan grinds his hips up, just a tiny motion, but it’s enough to cut him off with a small cry. Molten heat pools in his stomach and causes a shiver to go down his spine, intoxicatingly so.

“Missed this ass,” Jeonghan chuckles, teasing. “Missed seeing you like this. Shua’s so lucky he gets to see you all the time.”

“I am,” Joshua says, voice low. “Wish I could keep him in bed every day, trembling and begging like this.”

“Oh, now _that’s_ an idea,” Jeonghan murmurs. “Maybe we should tie him up sometime, you’d like that, would you, Mingyu?”

“Yes. Yes, yes, yes, please, just move a little, hyung, I swear—”

Jeonghan doesn’t waste any time, canting his hips up again, and Mingyu tries to match the pace, aided with the help of Joshua’s hands. He fucks himself down on Jeonghan’s dick, feeling the strain in his muscles, the burn in his thighs, and the pleasant ache eventually turn into a buzzing satisfaction. He’s ridiculously hard himself, worked up with nowhere to turn, his mind focused solely on making Jeonghan feel good, pulling all sorts of facial expressions from him below. It feels good, putting on a show for the two people he likes the most, listening to them groan and fumble with praise at how perfect he’s being.

“That’s it,” Joshua says, toying with Mingyu’s cock as he watches, enough to keep him on edge, but not enough to actually tip him over. The frustration is as sweet as it is scorching.

“Off,” Jeonghan finally ( _finally!_ ) gasps, tapping his leg sharply. Mingyu braces himself and pulls off, tumbling back against Joshua’s chest, and watches as Jeonghan yanks the condom off and jerks himself harshly to completion, brows furrowing and biting hard down on his lip as he comes. It’s hot, watching him get off to Mingyu riding him, and it seems like he’s not the only one who thinks the same.

“Look at you two,” Joshua whispers, strained. He places a palm against the flat of Mingyu’s back, just the barest hint of pressure, asking but not pushing. “Can I—?”

“Please,” Mingyu groans, falling forward onto his hands, holding himself up so he doesn’t crush Jeonghan below him.

Joshua positions himself, and then pushes in so easily Mingyu practically melts at the sensation.

“Ah, fuck,” Joshua sighs, running a warm hand down Minghyu’s side. “That was perfect, Mingyu-ah, Hannie really did fuck you right open.”

Mingyu whimpers at the heat in Joshua’s words, and Jeonghan grins up at him, reaching to stroke his cheek.

“Fuck him good, Shua, I want to watch his face when he comes.”

Joshua laughs, throaty. “That’s the plan.”

He’s just a tad rougher than he normally would be, thrusts punching forward and grip tight on Mingyu’s hip, and Mingyu eats it all up, the sensations and the heat and the pleasure. He loses track of time for a few moments, because the next thing he knows Jeonghan has a hand on his cheek and the other pushing at his arms, coaxing Mingyu to fall forward and rest against his chest. The change in position lets Joshua fuck into him deeper, and they moan in tandem at the feeling.

“Babe,” Joshua grits out, hips stuttering. “Babe, I’m gonna come.”

“Do it,” Mingyu sobs, punch-drunk and woozy. He turns his head to look at Jeonghan, who’s watching him with fire in his eyes. When he sees Mingyu blinking up at him, he smirks, lazy and pleased.

“Good boy, Mingyu,” he whispers, and kisses him, hard.

Mingyu comes like that, heart pounding in his chest, Jeonghan’s lips on his, and a second later he feels Joshua press into him with a deep sigh. His brain is fuzzy in all the best ways, and luckily it’s not like he’s got anywhere to go when Joshua pulls out, leaving him slumped against Jeonghan, enjoying the bliss that comes hand-in-hand with a fantastic orgasm.

“Hannie,” Joshua says, flopping onto the bed as well. “There are wipes in the drawer next to you.”

“You only use wet wipes?” Jeonghan asks in mock outrage, and a second later there’s a light smack and he yelps.

“Don’t be judgemental. You wanna get out of bed for a towel?”

“I’m kidding,” Jeonghan grumbles, but it’s all put-upon anyway. Mingyu lets Joshua roll him off and then he feels Jeoghna’s hands on him, carefully wiping him clean.

“ ‘s nice of you to finally tidy up, hyung,” he murmurs, half-asleep, and snickers when Jeonghan makes another offended noise above him.

“Don’t get used to it.

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Shh,” Joshua mutters, snuggling up to Mingyu’s side. Even though he’s shorter, he tucks Mingyu close to him and plays the big spoon, fumbling over the sheets until he manages to snag Jeonghan’s hand with his own. “Quiet, both of you. I wanna pass out right about now.”

“No complaints there,” Jeonghan mumbles back, pressing an absent-minded kiss to Mingyu’s brow. Mingyu smiles to himself, loving the feeling of having both hyungs surrounding him, warm and sated. He thinks he might’ve felt Joshua sneak a kiss between his shoulder blades as well, but he’s nodding off long before he figures out any of that.

* * *

He wakes to the sounds of clothes rustling and footsteps wandering around the room. Blinking sleep from his eyes, Mingyu lifts his head from his pillows, squinting in the early morning sun. Joshua is still asleep, cheek pressed against his bare chest and drooling slightly against him. The space on his right is empty, the blanket thoughtfully pulled up, and Jeonghan is standing by the nightstand, trying to shake out the inside-out sleeve of his shirt. Mingyu’s stomach drops.

“Hyung?”

Jeonghan startles, turning to look down at him.

“Mingyu,” he says, quiet. “Sorry, did I wake you?”

“No,” Mingyu says, staring at him. “Are you—are you leaving?”

Jeonghan winces. “I forgot I had to open this morning,” he grumbles. “I have a client coming in at nine.”

“Oh,” Mingyu says, and the panicked feeling swimming around in his stomach eases a little. Jeonghan gives up on his shirt and goes to put his pants on instead, even though the tangle of fabric doesn’t fare much better. His eyes are knowing when he glances over at Mingyu again.

“You thought I was trying to ditch you guys.”

“For a second I did, yeah.”

“Understandable. I was going to leave a note and call you later, but I guess it’s a good thing you woke up and I could tell you in person. Would you let Joshua know?”

“ ‘Course,” Mingyu yawns. He lifts his arm so he could wrap it around Joshua’s shoulder, rubbing the bare skin with his thumb. “He’ll be grouchy you ditched, so you better be ready to make it up to him.”

Jeonghan pretends to roll his eyes. “Some of us are small business owners. He’ll get over it.”

“Mm. Hey, just take something from the dresser,” Mingyu says. “Probably more comfortable than those jeans.”

Jeonghan looks at him for a moment, surprise flickering across his face, but he nods and opens the top drawer and comes away with a pair of Mingyu’s workout shorts and a plain t-shirt. Something in him warms at the sight of Jeonghan tugging on his clothes, baggy and unflattering and just so perfect.

“Okay, sorry, I really gotta run. I’ll text you two when I’m free in the afternoon, how’s that sound?”

“Sounds good,” Mingyu grins, waving sleepily at him. “Let’s get dinner tonight.”

“That’s a good idea,” Jeonghan nods, and then he bends down to kiss Mingyu, heedless of morning breath. Then he leans over and leaves a peck on Joshua’s cheek as well, expression fond. “Don’t let this sleepyhead waste the day away in bed.”

“Mm. Gotcha. Bye, boyfriend.”

Jeonghan pauses at the bedroom door, but when he turns there’s a warm, sweet smile on his face. The morning light looks wonderfully charming on him.

“See you, boyfriend.”

He closes the door softly behind him as he goes, and Mingyu relaxes against the pillows, already missing the additional warmth by his side. But Joshua chooses that moment to shift in his sleep, smacking his lips endearingly, and Mingyu rolls over so he could curl around his other boyfriend, and hopefully catch a few more minutes of sleep before getting up for the day.

He’s looking forward to dinner tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> asfdjsklms. sorry.


End file.
